


Starlights

by Beta_09



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir Has a Crush on Marinette Dupain-Cheng, Aged-Up Character(s), F/M, Hawkmoth Defeat, Hot Mess Adrien Agreste, Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug Deserves Better, Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug is Called MDC, Miraculous Ladybug PV, Pining, Post-Canon, Post-Reveal Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir/Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug, Returning Home, Students, Vigilantism
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-30
Updated: 2020-07-30
Packaged: 2021-03-04 11:01:05
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 13,253
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24968623
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Beta_09/pseuds/Beta_09
Summary: Marinette Dupain-Cheng was his lady.Adrien had this thought hanging around him like a ghost, it had haunted him for the passed four years.Marinette Dupain-Cheng was his lady, who had left him.And it stung him that he was mostly likely the reason why. Maybe he would never see her again but if he could only catch a glimpse of her through a crowd than maybe his heart wouldn't ache as much as it does now.
Relationships: Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir/Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug
Comments: 6
Kudos: 85





	1. Reunion

A room filled with familiar people yet Adrien felt all alone as he looked at his friends and former classmates.  
The one person he'd hoped would be here wasn't.

Everyone had noticed her absence but non dared to comment on it mostly because it was their fault she had left in the first place. 

Marinette Dupain-Cheng, the most wonderful person Adrien had ever gotten the chance of knowing, if only for three years.

Marinette Dupain-Cheng, his lady, the hero Paris had loved and had saved her.  
The hero that had left right after, the hero they had all but appreciated in her civilian form.

Adrien pushed her to the back of his mind, those thoughts were for later tonight when his mind would buzz with either sleep or alcohol or both. 

He walked over to Nino and Alya, they were talking with Chloé and Alix. Nino noticed him first and was quick to hug his best pal and welcome him back home, soon after Alya did the same.  
Alix gave him a firm handshake and Chloé scolded him for not calling the company first before returning to Paris. 

Adrien laughed at her, it felt good to be back after four years, England had been great and he had learned a great deal but Paris would always be his home and hearth. 

Nino nudged his shoulder. 

"Now tell us, how was Oxford? I sure hope they'll let you finish your studies here."

Alya agreed with her boyfriend. 

"They're not so stuck up, they at least need to look at your.....situation, right?"

Adrien smiled at their concern. 

"They told me I'm good to go and I'll be starting here in the second semester, so right now I just have time to focus on everything else."

Chloé huffed and crossed her arms. 

"Don't worry Adrien, I'll focus on all the legal aspects and mother said she will do most of the preparations."

Adrien was grateful for the help Chloé and her family had provided, it helped making this more bearable. 

Alix looked at the exchange between all of them and wondered what it would have been like if she were here. 

'Probably alot better.'

She thought and she said as much. 

"Have you guys heard anything from her?"

They all knew who Alix was referring to, it made their eyes glance elsewhere and hands fidgit.

Alya was staring straight to the ground, boring a hole in it with her gaze. 

"No, I've got nothing on her. I lost track after she went from Tibet to Hong Kong the third time. If even I can't find her she doesn't want to be found."

They all knew this in some part of their minds but it didn't feel good to say. They wanted to see her again and apologize and be friends again, if only they could find her. 

It haunted them that whole night, no matter how much small talk and jokes circled the room. 

Later that night in an attempt to keep it all at bay, the whole class agreed to have a small after party at a nearby café. 

While most of the class was outside waiting on the last few to join them, Adrien saw Luka Couffaine standing with a few people from his class, Felix was there too, he had tagged along with a few friends from university that so happened to go to the same school as his cousin.  
Kagami was there too, Luka's arm thrown around her shoulder. Sometimes Adrien regretted letting her go but he saw how happy she was with him and how much Luka adores her, it didn't make it better but bearable at the least.

A few rain drops began to fall and umbrellas were opened as the pavement began to shine in the recently lit streetlights. It was a nice Parisian night in autumn and Adrien shuddered as he pulled his jacket closer around him. He'd grown out of a lot of these as his shoulders had gotten broader by the year, it helped that he still tried to keep up his stamina and he had some muscle from the beginning.  
His hair was hanging in his face as a reminder to go to a salon soon, he pushed it back again as Nino came to stand next to him, offering him a cigarette as he lit his own.  
Adrien declined as he looked at Luka and Kagami's group. 

"Thought you stopped smoking?" 

Nino huffed, a cloud of grey spewing from his mouth. 

"Yeah I did but you know sometimes it helps against nerves."

"What are you nervous about?" 

Nino looked at him, punching his glasses up and taking another drag. 

"You know, we all thought that maybe she'd be here tonight."

Adrien's shoulders slumped, he could've guessed it was about her.

"She really never contacted you?" 

Nino asked him, Adrien didn't look at his friend as he thought back to his time as her partner. 

"No, why would she."

"Dude, you were her partner for like four, three years. She trusted you with her life."

It did Adrien good to hear his friend talk with such conviction. 

"She trusted all of us, not just me."

Their conversations was over as soon as Alya joined them, she was more sensitive than anyone when it concerned her friend.

The sound of a roaring engine drew everybody's attention to a motorcycle coming down the road, it was a modern model, one you'd see in a generic action movie, painted black and deep purple.  
It came to a screeching halt in front of the school, it's rider stepped off like an experienced motorcyclist. They were clearly a woman by the curve of her hips and those legs. Adrien felt like he knew them, the way they walked and moved made him think twice, confident, controlled and fluid. They wore a pair of dark jeans, black Doc Martins, a dark blue denim jacket with a dark gray hood over a dark red blouse tucked into her jeans. A deep purple and black helmet with darkened visor made sure to protect their identity.

Luka, Kagami and Felix seemed to know her as they walked over to the stranger as they took of their helmet.

Luka waved at the rider and called their name, making everyone's heads turn to them.

Alya gasped, it almost sounded like a sob. Nino muttered a 'holy shit' under his breath and Adrien well...

Adrien's world stopped as he spotted her raven hair, it almost looked blue in the light of night, it was longer than before, now it spilled over her shoulders and back. But her eyes were still the same like endless skies and her smile was still as bright as she hugged Kagami.

She was here, Marinette Dupain-Cheng, Ladybug, his lady.  
No one moved, they were all frozen in place as Marinette hugged Luka and Felix and talked to them like old friends. 

She had come, she was here, she was in front of them. 

Alya was first to move, yelling her name as she ran over to her former best friend. 

Marinette turned around slowly, she had recognized that voice immediately. It had been a long time since she last saw her classmates, her teammates, she wondered if they had forgotten about her.

Alya had changed, she noticed, she cut her hair shorter than before, her glasses were a different shape and she had gotten alot taller since they were kids.  
She looked good, except for the tears shining in her eyes and that worried look on her face. 

Had....had Alya missed her?

Marinette looked past Alya to see the rest of her class standing there, almost mortified, like they'd seen a ghost. 

She immediately noticed Nino and Kim, they both had changed so much from the scrawny boys she had known when she was small. It was weird to see Kim with his hair slicked back but he made it work, Nino still looked the same except for his mediocre attempt at a soul patch. 

Alix and Chloé stood close to them, Marinette could easily recognize them, the same could be said about her other classmates. 

That's when she noticed him, her partner, her childhood crush, Adrien Agreste.  
He had become taller and broader like she knew he would, he looked like he still worked out, no doubt he was still a massive dork but he looked good, he always did. She put his good looks aside as his spring green eyes seemed glued to her, they looked.....hopeful.

She half expected him to come leaping across the pavement to her but she knew he may resent her for leaving. 

She locked eyes with him, everything else fell to the background as it was just him and her. 

Marinette broke their spell rather quickly, she didn't have time for these feelings again. 

Alya had stopped just a few steps away from her, Marinette didn't want to deal with their turbulent relationship today but not saying anything wouldn't make it better.

"You're back! Where...we-" 

Marinette did give Alya time to finish, they weren't friends anymore, she had moved on. Keeping her voice neutral and her face uninterested helped calm her nerves and get her point across.

"There's no need to worry, I'll get out of your hair soon."

She turned back to Felix, Luka and Kagami, promising they'll hang out soon before returning to her motorcycle, she got as a gift from her grandmother who taught her how to drive. 

She got on it and was ready to put on her helmet when she heard her name being called.  
Looking up, she saw Adrien standing only two meters away.  
The rain her made his hair shiny, like gold, it was longer than before, he looked more like his alter ego than ever before. 

"Mari-"

He began but changed his mind to address her differently. 

"My lady, I-"

She didn't give him time to talk to her, he may look surprised and maybe even happy to her but in reality he wasn't, he couldn't be, he probably hated her and he would be right to. 

"Don't."

He stopped talking immediately, sounded so resolute, so cold and foreign to him. She wasn't looking at him directly her gaze somewhere on the ground, those blue eyes now looking like clouded sky's. It was the same when she left, she looked like she was angry at him but mostly sad.

"I'll leave soon, you don't have to deal with me for long."

She said as she put on her helmet, hiding her face from view but Adrien saw that split second of hesitation which he reflected as he decided to just stay silent and let her take off into the streets of Paris.

Adrien stared after her, not paying attention to Alya raging against Luka and Kagami as Felix was shouting back at her just as loud. Adrien would talk with Nino about it later as the bespectacled young man tried to calm his girlfriend down while also trying to not lose it.

For now Adrien just wanted to stare after her, like he did when he was young and she was his partner and she would swing away into the night.


	2. Business meeting

Chat Noir was out later that night, in vain searching for his lady but she wasn't there, no red and black in sight.  
Still the leather clad hero stayed out, keeping an eye out for a purple and black motorcycle with a rider wearing the same color helmet.

Eventually he gave up and flopped down on a vacant rooftop, his back on the ground as he stared up at the sky. The rain had passed and only the dark night sky stayed as he spotted some stars through the light pollution. 

Chat looked at those few stars frozen above him and suddenly he felt restless again. Frustration bubbled up and refused to stay down as he lay there motionless. 

'She is back.......but why?!'

Why would she return after so long and not even want to-just out right refuse to talk to him. What was with that?! They were so close for almost four years, they trusted each other with their lives. Hell, she confess to him two years prior to her leaving and he had been stupid enough to reject her sure, Adrien beat himself up over it everyday.

He had loved her back then, he had loved Ladybug, he'd idolized her and put her before everything. It was more of an obsession really, Marinette had told him as much when he confessed to loving her after they revealed their identities to each other.  
Adrien wasn't proud of his reaction, he'd just found out his father was Hawkmoth and lost him that, his mother had turned out to not have been missing and he lost her all over again when she failed to survive the coma she was in.  
He'd been a mess, he had explained that he was in love with the girl behind the mask too, that he was so happy it was her. He had pleaded with her to love him and she told she already did but not in the way he wanted.

When she moved to China with her parents that year, he had crumbled and was out almost every night.  
It took Nino talking to him almost every day, Alya coming over for tea regularly, a good slap in the face from Chloé and a therapist to get Adrien to deal with his feelings and struggles.

After two years Adrien started to feel like himself, he still went regularly. He than started to face the empire his father had build, Agreste Fashion.  
Adrien knew he didn't want to continue modeling, instead he wanted to study physics or chemistry, he was good at it and it interested him.

But there was still his father's company to take care of, it would be his when he'd turn twenty one.  
Audrey Bourgeois had considered taking it over and Adrien would have been happy to give it to her but the negative reputation she would take on meant much more to her than the profit she could make it with. 

No other company or designer had come forward to bid on the Agreste brand until half a year before Adrien turned twenty one. It was a beginning designer who had their headquarters based in China, Hong Kong to be precise. They went by the name MDC, Adrien never got their full name, he didn't even know what they looked like but they had the money and status to buy Agreste Fashion.

Their work was truly stunning and on the high-end of fashion. Apparently they were funded by a very wealthy Chinese family that had their hands in many other businesses around the world.

In the morning Adrien would have to go to Audrey's studio to sign over the company papers and finally meet this 'MDC'. 

He woke up to the sound of his phone ringing on his living room floor. He had come home to his modest apartment at around three, detransformed and immediately fell asleep on his couch. Adrien pried his eyes open, picking up his phone and blinking against the light of the screen.  
Chloé was calling him, no doubt about the contract signing, he huffed before picking up.

"Hurray, he isn't dead."

She told him in a totally serious voice as Adrien put her on speaker and began to change out of his clothes from last night.

"You know what today is right?" 

"It's contract signing day Chlo, I wouldn't dare forget."

Adrien responded as he pulled up a pair of dark blue trousers, it was part of a tailored suit of which he also put on the the dark blue blazer over a light grey button up shirt. 

"Very funny Adrien but please be there before MDC arrives, we wouldn't want to make them wait."

The way Chloé spoke didn't sneak past Adrien. 

"You okay? You don't sound that excited?" 

He could hear his friend sigh as he put on a pair of comfortable sneakers, he didn't want to be all business and no party. 

"I just don't know about them. Something just doesn't sit right."

Adrien rummaged through his fridge and found a forgotten liquid breakfast in the back. 

"Weren't you the one that wanted to meet them in person?" 

"I know but it's just......just be on time please."

She sounded exhausted but that didn't surprise Adrien all that much. Chloé had become very busy these past few years, she had began to study European politics and was now busy with a minor in management and accounting. Still, they way Chloé's voice paused made him worry somewhat. 

"I'm just now walking out the door, I'll be there in ten."

Adrien said as he closed his door and headed for the subway, breakfast and jacket in hand. 

He arrived when it was just about to rain, Chloé was already waiting for him at the reception with his attorney, Mr. Drake, who had befriended Chloé when she started university.  
They shook hands and went over the events that would soon transpire, Audrey soon joined them as she would be attending the signing as a third party there to witness it happening. 

Not even ten minutes later the second party, MDC, arrived and Adrien's heart dropped so low he was sure his pants were on his knees as he saw her walking into Audrey Bourgeois' studio.

MDC

Marinette Dupain-Cheng

Adrien glanced at Chloé who looked not as surprised as he felt. That's why she sounded so worried this morning, she knew or maybe she had a hunch it was Marinette. 

That would explain why she was back in Paris, it would match up with MDC's background and more importantly the initials matched and Adrien felt like an idiot. 

Marinette looked like the absolute entrepreneur and fashion prodigy she was strutting in on a pair of black, ten inch heels, with an elegance that her younger self would be proud of. She sported a dark, forest green suit, the pants flared out at the bottom and her blazer was draped over her shoulders. A cream colored satin blouse with long billowing sleeves and a very low cut v-neck was tucked into her pants, secured by a thin black belt. Her usual black earrings and a delicate golden chain necklace completed the look.

Her hair was pulled into a messy bun sitting low on her head, her bangs still fell perfectly over her forehead and rested on her brow, it made Adrien quickly push his own hair back as if that would fix it. 

Marinette was flanked by two other people, one of which Adrien knew all to well.  


The woman on her right looked a lot like Marinette, maybe she was family?  
But the longer Adrien looked the more he could see their differences. Where Marinette's hair was almost a midnight blue this woman's hair was like black ink spilling over her back in the form of a neat yet simple braid, bangs covered her forehead and two long strands of hair framed her round, porcelain face. The woman's blue eyes were leaning towards an off shade of grey, she wore a burgundy colored, sleeveless turtleneck with a drak brown pencil skirt. Even on her elegant loafers with a small heel she was just as tall as Marinette but smaller than the familiar young man, who looked a lot taller than he was next to the two women.

Felix Graham de Vanily, the young man on Marinette's left and Adrien's cousin. The blonde was dressed in a dark grey turtle neck and a pair of black trousers, a dark brown oversized jacket and polished dark brown loafers make him look distinguished and as stuck up as Adrien still believed him to be.

Adrien glared at Felix, how could he keep this a secret from him after his family found out what his father had become, Felix had begun to be actually nice to Adrien in his own way and Adrien believed they were finally becoming friends.

Before Adrien could acuse Felix and cause a scene, Audrey stepped forward, her hand extended to Marinette and a smile on her face.

"Welcome! How good it is to see you once again, Madame Dupain-Cheng."

Marinette smiled back politely as she shook Audrey's hand, shooting a glance to the other three present. 

"The pleasure is all mine, I must say you're studio is quite something."

She was a smooth talker Adrien noticed, giving compliments and smiles like it was nothing. Adrien had seen his fair share of bootlickers and clingy fans, but Marinette was never somebody like that.  
He remembered her as clumsy, much too kind for her own good and headstrong. As Ladybug she was strategic, brave and unstoppable but now she was all of that. She had made Ladybug and Marinette her own, Adrien could see it from the way she held herself, she had changed too much for Adrien to claim that he knew her. 

"Let me introduce you to Mr. Drake."

Audrey waved her hand at a tall man with shining black hair and blue piercing eyes, Marinette and him politely shook hands and exchanged pleasantries. 

"You already know my daughter, Chloé-

Audrey continued as Marinette turned to her old frenemie. They didn't shake hands, only nodded at each other acknowledging the other's existence. 

-and you may remember monsieur Agreste."

She looked at him and the world fell away again for only a second as she extended her hand to him.  
Marinette didn't know why she did, maybe the turbulent feelings she had last night had died down a bit. She felt like looking him in the eyes today, now that he didn't look so much like his alter ego. Now he was just Adrien Agreste, the boy from her class, a friend from school, a crush from her childhood, he didn't really know her and she didn't really know him.

He slowly took her hand and shook it, a small smile played on Marinette's lips as Adrien looked at her with his mouth slightly ajar. 

"It's been a long time."

And than Adrien smiled back, it was a soft and hopeful smile. 

"It's good to see you again, Marinette."


	3. Rendezvous

Adrien was truly amazed at how much Marinette changed once she was working. 

She gave directions left and right, made sure every model was in place and looked meticulously for any faults or needed altercations in her designs. 

It was all part of a farewell fashion show Audrey wanted to hold as a sort of party for Agreste Fashion becoming a part of the MDC brand.  
The signing itself had only taken an hour in which Marinette's business associate, Brigitte, who was also her cousin, explained what would be done with the Agreste brand once it had been taken over by them. 

"We will sell the locations in North-America, Australia and South-Africa, all of their personnel will be offered a job in our existing locations in China, Japan and South-Korea or in one of the Agreste's locations in Europe. This way we'll put our focus on Eurasia, we'll build up a reputation and gather more funds before spreading out to America, the Middle East and Oceania."

Brigitte gestured to Felix and Audrey.

"Of course we'll work closely with madame Bourgeois and monsieur Graham de Vanily's family has offered to contract us for the costume design and manufacturing for their films, plays and theater pieces. With the backing of the Cheng family we will have a strong foundation to build the future of the MDC company."

It was impressive to be sure, Adrien had no idea that she had been working on this but to be honest Adrien couldn't really claim to know where Marinette had been for almost four years.

It was weird, he had to acknowledge, she seemed like a completely different person to him. She didn't stutter around him like she did when she was young, well she didn't when he was Chat Noir, she even bantered with him. Then again he'd only talked to her on two occasions, both of which he didn't utter more than one sentence before she either left or someone intervened.  
Hopefully he'd be able to talk to her again tonight, they were in the same room right now as they prepared for going on stage, he was wearing one of her designs.  
It was a long, white tunic by Chinese design, a beautiful embroidery of blooming Plum Blossoms and soaring swallows, the high collar, sleeves and bottom of the tunic were embroidered with a light red thread that shone like it was made of silk.  
A pair of simple black pants, made in similar fashion, and white flats finished his outfit. His hair had already been styled and a minimal amount of makeup covered his face and still Adrien wanted nothing more than to rub it off, it had been some time since he had modeled. 

After the arrest of his father, Nathalie had made sure he stopped and was protected from all the press and paparazzi. After his father's trail Adrien had made the decision to move to England, get away from it all and start over, the only reason he was back was because of MDC, because of Marinette. 

He had needed to be there to sign over the company and he had been happy to, if he were honest he missed Paris, he missed his friends.

It was good to be back, to have his own place in the city he loved and had fought for. It had not been the same without her there but now Marinette was and maybe she wouldn't stay long but Adrien would make sure that the time she spent with him wouldn't be spent with awkward silence anymore. 

He spotted her, or she spotted him as she went over to the models next to him and approving their looks. Juleka walked passed him and shot him a thumbs up and entered unto the runway, she had been modeling for a few years now and she was good. Right now Juleka was under contract with Audrey but by the look of Marinette staring after her made Adrien think she was aiming to snatch Juleka away as soon as her contract ended in December.

It was Adrien's turn to have Marinette inspect him and make sure he was runway ready. 

"So, you ready to do this one last time?"

Marinette asked as she made sure the hem of the tunic was straight and no lose threads were dangling from the it.  
He looked down at her and then stared off into the ceiling. 

"I just hope I won't trip on stage."

She giggled at that mental image as she got up and told him to give her a twirl, looked for any further fault in her design and admired his build and prominent features. 

He still looked handsome, Marinette wished he'd stopped looking at her with those impossible green eyes. They looked through her, they knew everything about her and no doubt they noticed the blush on her face as she saw them widen.  
Marinette turned away, noticing Brigitte waving at her, right, she needed to hurry and get changed.

"I don't think you need to worry, cats always land on their feet."

Is the last thing she told Adrien as she approved his look and send him to go wait for his turn on stage.  
Adrien smiled after her, as she hurried over to her cousin and disappeared behind a curtain. 

He missed her already, how did she do this to him? She had only been back for a week and he already felt lost without her. Had he learned nothing these past four years? He was okay on his own, he could be happy on his own and so was she. Marinette had made all of this around him happen, she had helped him without knowing it, well she knew it was his father's company, so maybe he had been helped by her without knowing it. She was something else, Adrien had known from the moment he had known it was her behind the mask. It was only after that that he felt guilty for not noticing her sooner, she, even without the mask, was their class president, the most popular girl in the school, the one that was always there for others, she worked in her parents bakery non stop, held one of the highest grades in their class, all the while being put down by Lila or Chloé at the time. 

And he had told her to just ignore it and let Lila talk while Alya and their other friends turned against Marinette. 

She had been right to leave, Adrien couldn't fault her for that anymore not after knowing that on top of all that she was Ladybug, she protected Paris on a daily basis, patrolled every night and needed to deal with being a guardian. 

Adrien had been wrecked with guilt over the times he felt like he fell short to her, all the times he had failed to help her when she needed him. 

He pushed those insecure thoughts aside and lowered his thoughts to zero as he took his first steps onto the stage. He passed Juleka on her way back, they exchanged encouraging glances as Adrien continued onward, passing multiple other models wearing Marinette's designs. The outfits were a mix of traditional Asian wear and more modern styles, a few European styled outfits could be seen walking along the runway, showcasing the range Marinette has as a designer. 

It was easy to block out all the faces staring at him, yet he still noticed heads leaning towards each other, he hadn't been seen modeling for a long time so it was inevitable that rumors would pop up. 

It only made Adrien take more confident strides and let his inner Chat come out.  
A sharp grin making it's way on his face as he posed on the end of the runway, making sure to take his time. 

He stepped down the elevated stage as he came backstage again, Adrien dragged a hand through his hair as he sighed with relief.  
But before he could change out of his outfit into his own clothes he spotted Marinette again and God was she gorgeous. 

An ankle length midnight blue jumpsuit with a Queen Anne neckline hugged her torso, showing her curves. It's pants were so wide and the fabric so dark it made it look like she was wearing a dress. A thin silver sash around her waist complimented the silver sparkles and miniscule stars embroidered on the lower part of the pants and around the neckline. 

Her hair was partially put up into a neat bun at the back of her head, the rest spilled over her back and was that silver thread braided into her hair???!!  
With the thin silver sandels and cuffs around her wrist it made her look like an ethereal goddess of the night.

Marinette walked past him, giving him a small smile and a wink before walking on to the stage followed by Audrey who motioned for Adrien to come with them. 

Before he knew it Adrien was back on stage walking on Marinette's right as Audrey walked by her left.  
It threw him off to be back on stage again, he never got to close a runway with his father and doing it with the girl he lov-

He stopped himself, no, that wasn't what he felt, he couldn't feel that. Adrien glanced at Marinette and felt himself grow soft at the sight of her, it was so easy for him to do.

Reporters and photographers were snapping pictures and shouting for a bit of their attention, Marinette and Audrey ignored them but Adrien glared against the flickering flashes of the cameras.

Temporarily blinded by the lights flashing, Adrien could feel himself trip but before his face could kiss the ground Marinette had grabbed a hold of his arm as inconspicuously as possible.  
He shot her a grateful look as he regained his balance, she nodded at him with this neutral look on her face.

Her grip was comforting to Adrien, it helped him keep his balance and made him feel like somewhere, deep down that his partner was still there.  
When she let go of him, Adrien reached out and hooked his arm through hers, keeping them close together.

Marinette froze for only a second before continuing walking down the runway with Adrien on her arm. Why had he linked their arms?

Walking with him like this made her heart jump a little with every step, she wished it didn't. It had taken a long time to get over him, mostly because she found out he was her partner and maybe Marinette had finally begun to move on from his civilian self and had started to fall for Chat Noir. Not that it mattered now, they had grown apart, they had all moved on.

No worried looks or hopeful glances could make her believe otherwise, they weren't her friends and certainly not her teammates anymore. 

So Marinette ignored her beating heart and let Adrien hold her close like that until they reached the end of the stage and she stepped away to speak to the crowd before her. 

She kept her speech short, introducing herself and thanking Audrey and the Agreste company for all the help they had given to her.  
She gestured to Felix and Brigitte in the audience when she talked about future projects with the Graham de Vanily and Cheng family.  
After that only a handful of questions was asked by the present reporters when Brigitte tapped on her watch to signal to Marinette that their time was up. 

Marinette waved goodbye to her audience as Audrey and Adrien followed her backstage. 

She slumped in a chair letting her nerves and anxiety overwhelm her for a moment, the hardest part was over. No matter how much she did this, Marinette still didn't feel comfortable on a stage like that, how she wished she could just keep on working in that small atelier in Hong Kong that her family owned. But sadly Marinette had ambitions and wasn't satisfied with just that. 

And even if she felt nervous and self conscious on that stage it was overshadowed by the feeling of triumph she felt when she signed that contract and was now the legal owner of all of Agreste Fashion's assets.  
The goal to tear down everything Gabriel had build was just a bit closer, she would tear his company down to the ground and build it up, shaping it into her own. 

It made Marinette's legs tremble less as she stood up and started direct her crew to begin the clean up, she would thank all of them later at their after party.

She turned to Audrey and thanked her again for all her help, setting a date for a future update on her plans as promised. 

It was only her and Adrien left now as everybody else was busy changing or packing up.  
He looked at her puzzled, as if he tried to figure out who she was. It unnerved Marinette that he could look into her and see who she once was. 

Even if his gaze made her feel naked she still turned to him as she reminded herself of the facts she knew about him. It made her feel calm to remind herself that he is Adrien Agreste, that he was a model, that his mother went missing when he was young, that he was the son of Gabriel Agreste, that his father's love for him was twisted and cruel, that his father was Hawkmoth. 

She reminded herself Adrien Agreste was Chat Noir and nobody beside her and their team knew. He was the boy she had a crush on, he was the best partner she could have ever hoped for.

He was the one that she pushed away, that she left behind, that she forgot. 

And he was a stranger now, he doesn't mean anything with his hopeful glances and adoring smiles. 

"Thanks for today."

Was all she dared to say to him, not waiting to hear his response and turning to leave him alone. 

Adrien watched her go, the painful expression that flashed across her face ingraved in his mind. He should had reached for her arm, he had been stupid for even trying to get closer to her. To hold on to whatever feelings there had been between them.

But he couldn't but stare after her as she went to work again, Adrien could only stare as he wondered what she thought of him now. 

It was later after he had changed and most people had left that he had another opportunity to talk to her. 

He waited outside the venue of the fashion show, it was raining and Adrien had no interest in getting drenched so he waited underneath the overhang off the building, hoping it would let up soon. If only he hadn't forgotten his umbrella. 

It was then that he noticed Marinette and her entourage exit the facility, Felix and Brigitte were the only ones with her. His cousin had an arm around Marinette's cousin's wait, the two of them stood underneath a shared blue umbrella. 

Adrien guessed Felix never told him about Brigitte because he would have teased him with it relentlessly. They made a good couple, Adrien noticed, Brigitte seemed like a cheerful and friendly person, they complemented each other.

The loving couple said goodbye to Marinette before walking off with loving gazes in their eyes.  
Marinette smiled after them, a soft smile he recognized from when she would look out over Paris with him. It was a smile that seemed to say 'take care'.

Than she noticed him and for a second that smile went to him and he felt his heart swell, than it dropped from her face and she opened her umbrella.

Why?

Why did she not smile at him anymore? She did it today and then she suddenly stopped, was it him? Did he push to much? Did he try to chase something again that wasn't there?

Adrien found himself calling out to her, wanting to get an answer out of her as to why she was like this. 

She turned to him, startled by his loud, desperate voice.

And Adrien stopped just a few steps from her, the look on her face was the same. 

It was the same as he begged her to stay and be with him. She looked scared and sad and......

"Adrien?"

Lonely. 

She looked lonely, distant from him.  
He was frozen on the spot, silent taking in the sight of her. Had she always been this far away from him? Had she always been this guarded? Had he done that to her? Had the others? 

She wanted to speak again. 

"Are yo-"

"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry about before."

Marinette looked at him questioningly, as if she didn't know what he was talking about. 

"It's fine, anybody can trip on stage."

What? No.

That's not it. 

Adrien scrambled his thoghts together as he took a few steps forward, now standing an arm's length from her.

"No, I- it's not- I mean about before, I'm sorry for everything."

He waited for her to talk to him, waited with that persistent hopeful part of him that wanted her to dismiss his words and accept his apology and forget that anything ever happened. 

But he knew from the look on her face she would never forget and she wouldn't soon forgive.

Marinette breathed deep in through her nose, a rising, strange mix of anger and panic threatened to claw through her throat in the form of a sob. Her voice was almost robotic as she spoke phrases that she had rehearsed for many nights, her eyes dull.

"Adrien, I will not blame you for me leaving or being mad at me for leaving. Just know that if you ever need my services as a Guardian again, I will help you with anything you need."

She went to turn on him. 

No, no!

Adrien looked on in horror as she took three steps away from him. She thought he was mad at her?!  
Yes, maybe in the beginning he was, he had been alot of things at the time.   
But she thought he didn't want to be friends with her anymore, that he didn't want to have her in his life.

Than she turned around to him, eyes shine like never before with regret and a hopeful kind of sorrow, she didn't know why. Marinette was sure she was crazy but the rain had made his hair wet and shiny, like melted gold. His eyes looked like the deep greens she'd seen in her family's gardens, they were filled with unspilled tears. 

Why?!

Why was he so sad? Why did he seem to either want to cry or want to hug her when she was near?  
Why did she want to hug him and tell him she was back and was never going to leave again?

He had sounded just as desperate as she felt, was it really okay to do this?

She took two steps towards him, extending her umbrella to him, covering him from the rain as her own hair slowly got wet. 

Adrien's eyes were wide open, a familiar feeling overtaking him at Marinette's gesture. 

This was the moment.

The moment she had fallen in love with him. 

The moment he had made his first friend. 

Thunder could be heard in the distance.


	4. Gathering

He held the umbrella in his hand and stared at it for an hour after he got home before finally putting it down and taking a shower.

After Adrien sat down at his dinner table and looked at the umbrella some more, she had shoved it in his hands and sprinted off, again. 

Adrien didn't know what to think anymore, the moment had been so painfully familiar that it made his heart hurt when the thunder had reached his ears. 

She was so different than when they first met, yet she was still the same, he was still the same too. 

Nothing had changed, not really, and Adrien was afraid nothing would change from when he was a child. His parents weren't around, he was still pining after a girl that wanted nothing to do with him. 

Sure Nathalie cared for him and tried to be there for him, his friends loved him and his extended family looked out for him but.....it was still the same. 

Somehow recovering from his past trauma had seem like something Adrien could do but the more he kept on feeling de void his parents and his partner left, the more he feared he would never move on. 

But than she had arrived on that motorcycle in the rain, and she looked like the person he knew, she had smiled and he was happy to just watch her.   
He had his partner back, only for a moment, only from afar and than she turned to him and they locked eyes and it felt all to real when her eyes saddened and became as hard as stone. 

He wanted that back, he wanted his partner back, his friend, her.   
But Adrien wouldn't beg, he knows now that he could never do that again, not to her and not to himself.

Meanwhile, a dark haired hero, long gone from the roofs of Paris, returned to the city of light, swinging around her yoyo through the night. 

The rain hadn't let up, it was still pouring down on her as Ladybug perched on top of the Eiffeltower.  
It made her reminiscent as she looked out of the city she knew like the back of her hand. 

Now that she sat on the steel beams of the massive structure the events of that afternoon flooded her mind once again.

It had been fate, Marinette was certain, her offering him an umbrella and the thunder in the distance.  
She had just pushed the umbrella in his hands and ran off, it seemed that was all she'd been able to do when faced with him. 

How much of a coward could she be, she ran away now, she ran away then, why did she keep running?  
Marinette knew why, she had been hurt and drained and not able to deal with her friends and school and rebuilding Paris and being a guardian.

Lila had been cursing and insulting her everyday, transferring to another class hadn't helped, the intervention of teachers and parents hadn't helped. What hurt the most was that Alya wasn't on her side, even if she didn't believe Lila, she didn't trust Marinette either. Nino had kept quiet most of the time, as had most of the class, even Adrien, who thought she would be able to put up with Lila's actions.

But it had been too much. 

After Fu had left, Marinette had been on her own, lessons from Wazz in how to be a Guardian and stories from the other Kwamis was all she had to work with. Rebuilding Paris after Hawkmoth's defeat on top of that had been hard to handle and to be honest Marinette had been ready to breakdown crying at any moment.

It was only when the reveal happened that she came to her tipping point, only then. Not when she needed to be in four places at once, not when she felt the effect the use of multiple miraculous had on her body, not when she was rejected by Adrien, not when she saw her partner and teammates die so many times and bringing them back with the miracle cure, not when she found out who Hawkmoth was and not when Fu, the only person to ever truly know what she was going through even if it was just a small part, went away.

No, not those times, she had been able to go through those moments holding her head high.  
She had been shattered from the moment she heard him and the others call off their transformation just as she had. 

It had taken everything in her not to faint in that moment, it had been to much. 

Her crush, that had rejected her, was also her partner that claimed to love her. Her teammates that vowed to fight by her side and had trusted her over and over again were also the classmates that didn't seem to care about what would happen to her. 

She had given them so much as Marinette only to receive as Ladybug, the duality of it all had made her laugh out loud. 

Jesus, it had sounded ridiculous when she thought of it now. 

Even though now it was all different, now she was back again, now four years had past and she had changed, they had all changed. 

Marinette remembered the way Alya had called out her name, like she was relieved to see her, maybe she was.  
But that wasn't true, if not then all this running away was-

It was for.....nothing. 

Than all the time she spent apart from them was for nothing and she could've just stayed right here and help rebuilt her parents shop instead of moving all the way to China and starting over again.  
Than creating MDC was for nothing and trying to erease Gabriel's legacy was for nothing.

All her suffering would mean nothing. 

'Does it have to mean something?'

A small part of her mind asked her, the same part that wanted to be with her friends in Paris again.

'Does your suffering and struggling need to have some kind of out come to be validated? Is that the point of doing all this? Is that all you are? Are you only the person your tears and breakdowns wear you down to be?'

Ladybug looked out over her sleeping city, it's lights twinkling, making it look like the streets were covered in fallen stars. It was quite in her head for some time before the voice spoke to her again. 

'Are you not the person that you build yourself to be? Are you not the one that picked up your own pieces and build yourself again?'

Marinette knew that voice was right, it was her own voice after all.

'You are still getting better and stronger every day and you know that all of these bad things that happened to you are things you will carry with you and overcome. They will not define who you are and be your purpose in life.'

Marinette stood up, the voice in her head now silent, it had accomplished it's goal. 

It suddenly felt exhilarating to stand on top of the Eiffeltower, as high as she could get, standing at the edge of a platform.

Marinette took out her yoyo, looking at it before gazing out at the air in front of her. She never imagined that being Ladybug could ever feel this freeing, she now understood Chat a little. 

With one small step forward she was falling through the air, the wind whipping around her, her hair blowing around her face not being able to hide the giant smile on her face. 

The city got closer as she fell. 

And Marinette rised to meet it.


	5. Gala

Adrien hoped Felix would be here soon, he checked his phone to see if his cousin had texted him, nothing.

Adrien looked up again, Chloé had really out done herself with this party, the ballroom of her family's hotel looked amazing. A giant chandelier was glistening with thousands of fake candles, the hard wooden floor reflected the lights beautifully.

Most of his friends and the other guests were on the dance floor already, making small talk or dancing away.  
It was more of a gala than a party, Adrien thought as he tugged at the collar of his dark green tux, he felt overdressed. 

Than he spotted his cousin walking into the room, Brigitte on his arm. 

The two made a beautiful couple, they wore matching colors, Felix was also dressed in a tux, his a dark blue.  
Brigitte was in a strapless, sapphire gown that made her look like a fairy queen.

Adrien made his way over to them as fast as he could, not spotting Brigitte's cousin coming in after them.

"Is she not coming?"

He asked as soon as he had joined them.  
Felix shot him an annoyed look while Brigitte squeezed his arm reassuringly, it made Felix relax only a bit before he answered his cousin's words.

"Hello to you too. Marinette took a separate cab than us."

Adrien sighed with relief, she was here, Brigitte smiled at him.

"You really wanted to have her here, huh?"

The way she said it made Adrien think Brigitte wasn't just talking about the party. 

"I just want to apologize to her about...everything."

Brigitte put a hand on his shoulder to encourage him. 

"If I know Mari, and I do, she isn't the type to avoid her problems. She'll be here, don't worry about that."

Adrien smiled at her. 

"Thanks Brigitte."

He said before she and Felix made their way further into the room, waving him goodbye and goodluck. 

Adrien was nervous, very much so as he kept tugging on his tux collar.  
Alix smiled at him as she saw him pacing at the entrance of the ballroom, before walking up to him. 

"What's got your boxers in a twist, Goldie locks?"

Adrien turned to her, his eyes darted to the main entrance before shifting to her. 

"Hey Alix, you haven't seen Marinette here by any chance?"

She made a face and took a swig of the campange in her fancy glass.

"I haven't, I didn't think she'd still be here never mind coming to this waste of money."

"If you really thought that you wouldn't have come here."

Alix grinned at him as she put her free hand into the pocket of her bright purple jumpsuit.

"Well, better to let them waste it partially on me."

They both laughed at that, Adrien finding himself less tense than just a few moments before. 

"You waiting for her to turn up?" 

Alix asked him a neutral look on her face, Alix had always been weirdly in different to anything regarding Marinette. Adrien never knew how to read her quite right. 

"Uhh, yeah. I just hope she isn't second-guessing this."

"Don't worry, our leader won't back out at the last second."

Adrien was surprised to hear those words from anyone. It had been a long time since any of them had addressed her as their team leader.  
But Alix was always weirdly okay with everything, why was she like that? It puzzled Adrien, it felt like he was missing a detail, something important.  
Before he could think any further Alix spoke. 

"She'll be here Adrien, it's only a matter of time."

She cryptically said before giving him a parting wave and making her way over to Kim who had just arrived and was quick to spot his date.

Adrien looked after her as she received a kiss from Kim and lead him into the room. Alix was right, she would be here, Adrien knew he just needed to believe in her and Brigitte's words. 

Marinette would be here and they would talk and he would tell her how he feels and that would be it.  
Marinette would either reject him or return his feelings. 

Adrien imagined the way she would hug him and tell him she had missed him and never meant to hurt him. They would hold each other and stay like that for the rest of the night until everybody else had left and it was only them slow dancing in the giant ballroom.  
That was the best case scenario, but Adrien needed to be realistic, she could say no. 

It was probably a bigger possibility than his ideal dream. 

If Marinette said no than that was it, Adrien wouldn't bother her ever again. He would turn away, finish his school, leave Paris and start somewhere new, it had been a long time goal for him. Adrien didn't want to be associated with his father anymore, he couldn't handle that, not now, he needed a break, a long one. 

And if Marinette were to be with him than maybe he could pull himself out of his father's shadow and be his own person, finally. 

Those were his only options, Adrien assured himself as he kept an eye on the entrance, looking for a woman with midnight hair and eyes made of blue starlight.

\----------

Outside of the hotel Marinette was having a nervous breakdown, sitting on the steps infront of the lobby entrance with her head in her hands. Sure she had made her resolve to face him and talk everything out but that didn't mean she wasn't nervous about it. She was. 

It luckily wasn't raining today but the cold wind made her shiver and wish she would just calm down and get inside. Her dress was to bare and thin to protect against the cold and she could see her toes turn blue under the straps of her heels. She looked at them and tried to wiggle her toes in an attempt to warm them up, a pair of sliver loafers and golden flats came into view.

"Why so glum sugar plum?" 

Luka asked her smiling as she looked up to see him and Kagami standing in front of her, Marinette got up and hugged both of them. 

"Isn't Felix with you guys?"

She asked as she missed the blond from their trio, Kagami and Luka smirked. 

"He finally asked Brigitte out, to go with him here."

Kagami said as she held out her hand smugly smiling at her. Marinette groaned as she went through her purse and found a twenty euro bill and dropped it off in her hand. 

"I didn't think Felix had the balls to actually do it."

"You literally think Felix is incapable of doing anything."

Luka told her as he gave his girlfriend a thumbs up for winning the bet. 

"Only when it comes to Brigitte."

Kagami noted as she safely stached away the bill into the pocket of her maroon jumpsuit before turning her attention back to Marinette. 

"Why are you out here by the way? The party is inside." 

Marinette huffed and crossed her arms.

"Well, It doesn't really feel like much of a party more like a confrontation."

Luka and Kagami shot each other a look before Luka spoke. 

"Have you talked to any of them?" 

"Not since I arrived here, not really."

She admitted, it was hard to approach them out of the blue like this. Luka put a hand on her shoulder to comfort her as Kagami spoke to her encouragingly. 

"You have to talk to them eventually, I'm sure they'll want to talk to you after so long."

She looked at them a concerned look on her face. 

"What would I even say to them?" 

She asked almost desperately. 

"Just start with saying hi and I'm sure you'll know what to say after."

Luka told her calmly, Marinette still admired how relaxed he was in these types of situations and huffed at how his steady voice had calmed her too. She thanked both Luka and Kagami and watched them go into the hotel promising to dance with both of them.

Hyping herself up Marinette was ready to walk in there and have a good time before she spotted Alya and Nino. They had just stepped out of a taxi, Alya's dress looked like a flowing river of white and cream colored slik, Nino on the other hand looked like the shadow to her light, he was dressed in dark blues and violets

They stopped at the entrance fishing out their invitations from Alya's purse, Marinette approached them cautiously as she mustered up the courage to take the first step. 

"Hey."

Alya looked up promptly forgetting their invites as she recognized her friends voice, she looked at Marinette with shock dripping from her face.  
Nino was much the same as they both stared in heavy silence for a moment, Marinette fidgeting with her fingernails as she awaited a response. 

She had said hi, now what!?

Alya was first to move, taking an uncertain step towards Marinette, she saw the way Marinette had changed. She hadn't averted her gaze, she wasn't looking at the ground, she wasn't hunched over, she was scared of shy, she was looking at Alya with her chip and proud. Then she saw her fidgeting hands and smiled only slightly, maybe her friend hadn't completely changed. 

"You're not going to dissappear on a motorcycle this time?"

Marinette's eyes widened at the joking words of Alya as she smiled at her. Without wasting another word Marinette closed the distance between them and hugged her friend tightly, eyes wet with tears of relief as Alya wrapped her arms around her almost wanting to cry too.

"I missed you so much."

Marinette said realizing she really had, she really had missed Alya's strong laugh and warm hugs.  
Alya leaned back to look her in the face, a guitly expression on her face. 

"I'm so sorry Marinette."

Marinette smiled at her friend promising her that she wasn't angry at her and that they were going to talk soon before turning to Nino.  
The boy had stared at the girls with a soft grin on his face and was already going in for a hug as Marinette approached him. 

"Dudette you really made us worry."

He told her as he let go of his childhood friend, Marinette widely smiled back at him.

"Yeah, I know."

"It's good to have you back."

Nino said as he side hugged her and they talked some more outside. Marinette and Alya making fun of Nino's soul patch, joking like old friends, getting to know one another again before they would tackle the heavy topics later.

\---------------

Marinette stared at the entrance to the ballroom, if she were gripping her purse any harder she would tear it. The only thing she could think about was that Adrien was in there and she would have to face him again after leaving him in the rain with her umbrella in his hands.

Alya bumped her shoulder against hers, making Marinette snap out of her anxious fretting. 

"You okay, girl?"

Marinette glanced at her friend before turning back to the door, nervous laughter wanted to crawl out of her but she suppressed it, her voice coming out wobbly instead. 

"Nervous."

Was all she dared to say as she feared she would break down again and run away as far as possible. 

Alya knew her history with Adrien was complicated even if you excluded the fact that they had been superhero partners for most of their teenage years without either of them knowing it.  
Alya knew how hard the past few years had been on Adrien and how her friend had struggled with the loss of his family and partner. She knew how much he cared for her and how much Marinette had cared for him both as Chat Noir and Adrien.  
It had broken her heart to see Marinette get rejected by Adrien, it was only after Marinette had left that Alya realized she should have been there for her then.  
It was a wake up call for Alya, she had lost months of sleep thinking about all the thing she could have done better, she had stayed up nights in a row trying to find any sign of her friend and teamleider, her idol.

Looking back her obsession with superheroes was something Alya mainly cringed at now, she had taken her duties as Rena Rouge with a grain of salt. When Ladybug had left Paris it had been up to Rena, Carapace, Queen Bee and the others to protect and built up Paris after Hawkmoth's defeat. Chat had been to out of it to go back to hero work right away, none of them blamed him. Ladybug had become their scapegoat in the beginning, shoving all the problems they were having without her leadership on Ladybug. She had left them to fend for themselves, she had been selfish and cold for leaving them behind when Paris needed her most, when they had needed her most. That was when Luca and Kagami had taken a step back, not agreeing with how the team was handling things. Alix had warned them that if they continued like this Paris would be better off without them, they didn't listen at first. When Adrien had come back as Chat and had seen how tensions were rising within the group he had been the one to step up. He put them in their place, Alya had been grateful for it. She had been a mess, she admitted and Adrien of all people shaking her out of it was, again, a wake up call.

Alya looked at Marinette, her blue eyes were full of worry and expectations, they were different from the dull and empty eyes she had seen her with the first time Marinette had shown up in Paris on her motorcycle. 

She had looked pretty badass on that purple motorcycle tough, Alya had to admit, anyone would have looked cool on a vehicle like that.

Now her friend looked rather small and frail, trying not to rip the hair out of her head, it reminded Alya of her friend's younger self.

It made her think of simpler times. 

Alya shook it off, she was living in the now, those times were gone and both she and Marinette were different people who couldn't go back to being like they were, why would they? What was had past, no point in changing it.  
She took a breath and slapped her friend on the back, it was easy to slip into the part of hype-man or wing-women.

"Go get him Mari!"

Marinette looked like she was about to faint, God she was going to die.

"I can't just walk in there and talk to him!!!"

She shrieked back at Alya who shot Nino a look and he was with her in an instant a grin on his handsome face.  
Alya was quick to prove the opposite as she and Nino grabbed Marinette's shoulders and pushed her through the doors. 

"Sure you can."

Nino said humorously.

"Alllllyyyyyaaaaaaa."

Marinette lamented through her teeth as she was shoved into the room, her cheeks red with embarrassment which quickly subsided as she noticed no one was paying attention to the entrance and were mostly conversing or doing their own thing.

She whipped her head back to the couple grinning at her, giving them a glare that would scare them if she weren't in a pretty dress and with her hair wasn't pinned up into a loose bun, some strands of hair spilling from it. Now they just smiled back at her, telling her to step her pussy up and go get her man and Marinette reacted with groans and quotes along the lines of "It's not like that!".

It was only when she heard her name being called at the bottom of the stairs at the entrance, that her attention was pulled away from her teasing friends.  
Down there was Adrien, a relieved smile on his face as he put his foot up on the first step of the stairs, his eyes were really as green as she knew them to be, his longer hair really made her remenisce to his alter ego, to her partner. The thought sobered her up enough to keep looking into his eyes as she walked down the stairs, to let him know she was here for him.

Adrien couldn't believe his eyes, wel he could and he did because she was here and she looked so gorgeous.

Than he noticed her dress, it was red, not just any kind of red but the blood red, the scarlet of her suit, the color of Ladybug. She was his other half, him in green, her in red, she had noticed too, he could tell from how her eyes softened at the sight of his attire.

Adrien hadn't moved from his spot, still one foot on the first step and his hand on the railing. Marinette was now two steps above him, not sure what to do now as they both just kept on staring at each other.  
Last time she saw him, she had left him behind in the rain and he had looked so sad and disappointed but now he looked hopeful.

He looked as hopeful as he did at the runway, he looked comfortable and, dare she say, happy.  
She felt like running again, not wanting to disappoint him, not wanting to let him down again.

But the thing was, Marinette didn't know how she was letting him down. Obviously she had let him down, she had left, she hadn't love him as Chat when she was Ladybug, she had stopped being his partner, she hadn't been there when he needed her and when she had needed him.

That may have been a part of it too. 

Marinette had isolated herself, her circumstances, her duties had forced her to take a step away from her friends and family but it was Marinette who had found comfort in it. It had become a shield, a blanket to wrap around herself for protection, a way to stop communicating to others.  
She hadn't confided in Chat about her problems, she hadn't shared what little information she could tell her partner.

Marinette hadn't been a partner to him even before she left and maybe that had hurt him some too. 

She dropped her gaze first, choosing to look at his dark green suit instead. Adrien's smile fell for a moment but he refused to let his positive expectations fade and went to speak before she would turn and run again.

"Uh do yiiuo-" 

Adrien stopped himself, slapping a hand over his mouth as his voice had cracked making it shoot up into a high tone, a blush formed on his cheeks. 

Just that moment made all that anxiousness in Marinette flow out and be replaced by nervous laughter that shook her whole body and settled as a genuine fit of laughter in her lungs as she tried to keep it in, also putting a hand over her mouth not wanting to laugh at him right in his face. 

"Marinette please don't laugh!"

Adrien whined at her as Marinette doubled over, small giggles spilling from her lips. It did him good to see her like this, carefree and laughing and soon Adrien was smiling and laughing with her too. 

"Haha-ha-he-heee....*huff*, he-hey, I-I'm sorry."

Marinette said when her fit of laughter died down a bit and the reason why she wanted to be here came to her again.  
Adrien looked up at her, at her reddened cheeks and piercing blue eyes that were finally directly looking at him, before he could respond to her she went on. 

"I-" 

She stopped and took a deep breath. 

"I shouldn't have run, I-, it wasn't fair to you, I wasn't fair. I'm sor-" 

"Stop."

He cut her off, his eyes serious, he reached out his hand and hesitated before taking one of her hands that had twisted itself in the skirt of her dress. He traced the lines in her palm and the calluses on her fingers, the tenderness of it made Marinette's eyes water and her hands tremble, the laughter she had felt so spontaneously was gone again and the release of all the emotions she had felt the last few days or maybe years was threatening to overpower her and open a faucet she would not be able to turn off. 

But she kept it in, knowing how to do it from years of practice and let him continue speaking as he continued to not notice her tearful eyes, having all his attention on tracing her hand and remembering how much she had made for him. His brow was furrowed as if he were in deep thought, like he was trying to say words he had memorized in his head.

"I was mad when you left, I wasn't thinking straight at the time, it's not an excuse but I just want you to know....I am sorry, I loved you and I could have never asked for a better partner and I still want to be your friend."

Marinette was crying when he finished and took er hand from his, making Adrien freeze, trying to wipe away the tears and minimize her own embarrassment.  
Adrien raised his head seeing the blubbering and snotty mess that was Marinette staring back at him. Something stirred in him, a feeling of release came over and and before he knew it he was reaching out again.

"I-I-I ammmmm ssssorry I lleffft, I's ssscared. I sooo ssorry-hy."

She incoherently tried to convey to him what she meant, Marinette didn't know if he understood her but when he wrapped his arms around her she made sure to latch on to him and put her arms around him securely.  
She cried on his shoulder, trying to talk and explain herself. 

"I ammm sssorry. I wasss meannn annd sstuupid."

He shushed her, her trembling going through him. She felt sorry? She was scared, was she scared of him?  
He never wanted that! He would have never guessed she was scared of him! Why? He never wanted that....

"No I was, I wasn't being fair to you, I wanted you for myself, I was-" 

His voice broke again, he was rambling to much he wanted explain himself so much, maybe it was her crying that set him off too but maybe it was mostly himself and his guilt and the memories he would just rather forget.

Memories of his father, his mother, his partner and his first love. 

He started sniffling, his eyes watering and his tears falling as Marinette noticed his shaking and patted his head with a shaky hand.

"I love you so much, please know that."

He managed to get out before he was overtaken by sobs. Marinette pulled back a bit, still hiccuping as her mind had released some tension through her tears, looking into his watery eyes, being able to stand at his eye level with now only one step between them. 

Those green lakes had been the only ones she had ever truly fallen in love with, those kind eyes that stayed soft after years of neglect and cold treatments, they had not hardened into emeralds that had been able to cut with a single look.  
It was the person she fell in love with, the person that had the makings of a villain but chose to be a hero.

A person that longed to be free with her beside them, a person that has now paved his own path, like she had paved hers.  
She let her hands slide to the sides of his face, cradling him and he leaned into her touch. 

He leaned into her and kept looking at her, searching her face and finding the same emotions there, finding the same person there. 

They were still broken, if only a bit, and they needed to heal, they needed to forgive themselves and they needed each other.

That was what they saw in the other. 

Even if decades would pass, they would still be in sync, they would still know the other. 

They'd know. 

They would love the other in any way they could. 

They kissed, unashamed and deep, trying to drown in each other so they wouldn't drown in their tears.

\-------------

Underneath the starry Parisian sky the gala continued.

Alix noticed the two of them and silently gazed at them as she slowly sipped her third glass of champagne that night.

Alya and Nino were quick to approach the embracing couple with oohs and aahs but something was wrong, their cheers died down quick as they rushed over to their friend's sides to comfort them.

Well, this was certainly a first for Alix. 

The two had been crying their eyes out the whole time, she could spot the redness in and around their eyes and the black mascara streaks on Marinette's cheek from a mile away. Nino was quick to fix them both up with some baby-wipes and soothing lotion from Alya's purse, Alix was impressed she had to admit.

After the four of them disappeared into the room Alix had lost sight of them for most of the night as she went to spent it with Kim, Max and Nathaniel.  
Juleka and Rose hopped by briefly to say hi and even Chloé came by them to chat. 

Alix took out her silver pocket watch, it was actually titanium but she didn't really care about the specifics like her dad usually did, and opened it to look at the time, it was almost there. 

Right on time she saw Adrien and Marinette walk through the glass doors from one of the many balconies lining the outside of the giant room. Their fingers entwined and tired but loving looks in their eyes. It seemed they had spent the whole night there as she hadn't seen them in the room the whole time. 

She watched as they walked over to where most of them were standing. A lot of other guests had left already leaving the room to mostly Alya, Nino, Alix and the others with Luca, Kagami and their two friends close by. 

It had been a long time since Alix had seen them both this serene, it was a nice change of pace and a sigh of relief left her as Marinette let go of Adeiens's hand and spoke to them all.

She talked about how she regretted leaving the way she did but wouldn't think twice about doing it again, she told them how much she had hurt because of their treatment but assured them she still wanted to work together again and maybe even be friends again.   
She told them about what she and Adrien had talked about and how they decided that for now, the best thing for them both was to lay low and move away from the spotlights, to move away from Paris. 

Alix agreed with them and she wasn't the only one as Kim immediately scooped her up into a hug once Marinette was done talking.   
Alix smiled at her date for tonight as he hugged his childhood friend with a broad smile on his face and a few stray tears falling from his eyes. 

The rest welcomed her back a little less roughly and apologized for their behavior, they had all been too hung up on themselves, too wrapped up in the flow to recognize their own behavior then. But now they knew, and they realized and they recognized. 

They were children, all of them. 

And they shouldn't be judged for the this they'd done not when they had to grow so much more, not when they were responsible for other people's lives.   
Not when they weren't supposed to have that responsibility. 

They had changed, they had seen the error of their ways, they had to reflect to adapt. 

And Alix was better off for it, it had made her reflect on so much more than just being a hero.   
It had been the same for everybody else, it had made them think, it had made them grow up quicker. 

It was sad. 

Even if their stories all didn't end in tragedies. 

It was still sad. 

Because no child should grow up too soon. 

No child should have to put everything on hold, even themselves, to help others.

No child should be tasked with saving the world.

No child should be isolated and fear letting others get too close. 

They were once children but now they had grown up and they were still children. They were still young, even if they felt centuries too old. 

Alix sat down in one of the chairs placed at the walls of the ballroom, they had all started to mingle amongst themselves when she went down that train of thought.   
Alix looked at them, the people she trusted with her life and felt she was even older than them. 

So many times had she tried. 

And now it seemed to work. 

Marinette had broken off from where she had been talking with Rose, Nathaniel and Nino, walking towards where Alix sat and flopped down into the seat next to her. 

"Are you okay?" 

Was the first thing Marinette asked her, Alix grinned at the way that question sounded so like Marinette. 

"Don't worry about me, what about you?" 

Alix retorted.

Marinette looked at her for a moment longer before turning to her group of old friends, talking and laughing amongst themselves.   
She looked at Adrien laughing at a joke Juleka made, it made her smile.

She loved him. 

A thought that came as naturally as perceiving the world around her. 

She looked at Alya and Nino and Kim and Nathaniel and Max and Luca and Kagami and.......  
All of them together there, with her sitting here, was enough. 

Just knowing she was with them again was enough. 

"I am okay."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading!


End file.
